Whistleblowers claim Border Patrol surveillance cameras 'out of service' as GOP demands answers from DHS

Over the past year, Fox News correspondents Bill Melguin and Griff Jenkins person been pursuing complaints from Border Patrol sources that galore of the important distant surveillance cameras successful aggregate sectors along the confederate border person not been operational.

U.S. House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee Republicans accidental whistleblowers came guardant to the committee past week, claiming that "some of the busiest Southwest borderline sectors person astir 50 oregon much cameras offline with aggregate towers that person been retired of work for much than a year."

On Wednesday, the House Homeland Security Committee sent a missive to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, claiming that whistleblowers came guardant to the committee past week with concerning accusation connected this issue. 

The missive from Republicans to Mayorkas demanded answers. 

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Border Patrol sources told Fox News that galore of the important distant surveillance cameras successful aggregate sectors on the confederate borderline haven’t been operating/working.  (Bill Melugin / Fox News)

Additionally, the committee says the sources assertion that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is liable for repairing the cameras, and it has been improperly contracting to companies employing non-US citizens against Customs and Border Protection (CBP) argumentation "who whitethorn beryllium physically manipulating the instrumentality connected the camera towers." 

These surveillance cameras are highly important to Border Patrol for tracking migrant evaders, smugglers, gotaways, and ample groups, and having truthful galore of them not moving is simply a large occupation for Border Patrol, committee sources said. 

"Multiple sources revealed to the Committee past week that much than 66% of the cameras successful the distant video surveillance systems upgrade (RVSS-U) programme are inoperable. According to these sources, some of the busiest Southwest borderline sectors person astir 50 oregon much cameras offline with aggregate towers that person been retired of work for much than a year."

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DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and migrants surging crossed the border. (John Moore/Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

In a connection to Fox News, the Border Patrol national said:

"Once again, we person different concern of ineptness from this administration, and it continues to amusement however retired of interaction DHS enactment is. Not lone does this person an interaction connected the state by not knowing who oregon what is coming in, it besides impacts the information of the agents moving the beforehand lines," Art Del Cueto, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council said. 

NBC News reported that an October memo said astir one-third of cameras, astir 150 of 500 cameras connected surveillance towers, were retired owed to method issues. 

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Texas National Guard troops ticker implicit much than 1,000 migrants who had crossed the Rio Grande into Eagle Pass, Texas, overnight from Mexico. (John Moore/Getty Images)

"The nationwide contented is having important impacts connected [Border Patrol] operations," the memo said.

The RVSS are astir 15 years aged and are utilized to show areas of the borderline without the request for regular connected the crushed patrols. Agents volition trust connected a assortment of detection and surveillance, including AI-powered towers, arsenic good arsenic helicopters, K-9s, the borderline wall, and the agents themselves.

Agents person noted the helpfulness of the automated surveillance towers, which are much precocious and usage AI to way migrants and assistance agents find them. CBP has deployed much than 300 of the towers.

Officials accidental that RVSS is an old, costly strategy requiring regular attraction and dedicated unit to show the cameras. That is opposed to the newer systems that usage AI and supply alerts to agents successful existent time.

"CBP continues to instal newer, much precocious exertion that embrace[s] artificial quality and instrumentality learning to regenerate outdated systems, reducing the request to person agents moving [on] non-interdiction functions wrong a section bid center."

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However, the National Border Patrol Council’s subdivision successful Laredo, Texas, precocious highlighted the issues and told agents that it "shares your concerns that inoperable camera towers on the borderline are causing superior Officer Safety and Border Security concerns."

The study comes arsenic borderline information remains a apical contented up of the 2024 election. Both statesmanlike candidates, erstwhile President Trump and Vice President Harris, person pledged to supply much backing to the confederate borderline and person been attempting to amusement voters that they are the stronger campaigner for securing it.

Fox News' Adam Shaw and Griff Jenkins contributed to this report.